Dune Brittlestem
Psathyrella ammophila
Psathyrella ammophila is a species of fungus in the family Psathyrellaceae and is found throughout Europe. Commonly known as the dune brittlestem, this agaric primarily grows on sand dunes near marram grass, feeding saprotrophically on the decaying roots.
Photo: iNaturalist: (c) noah_siegel, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), uploaded by noah_siegel
Taxonomy & Classification
Kingdom
Fungi
Phylum
Basidiomycota
Class
Agaricomycetes
Order
Agaricales
Family
Psathyrellaceae
Genus
Psathyrella
Dune Brittlestem belongs to the family Psathyrellaceae, order Agaricales, within the Agaricomycetes class.
Species Profile
Psathyrella ammophila is a species of fungus in the family Psathyrellaceae and is found throughout Europe. Commonly known as the dune brittlestem, this agaric primarily grows on sand dunes near marram grass, feeding saprotrophically on the decaying roots. In the Northern hemisphere, the season of growth is generally May to November.
The Dune Brittlestem faces severe decline due to coastal habitat destruction and fragmentation from urban development, tourism infrastructure, and sea-level rise. Its highly specialized dune ecosystem requirements make it extremely vulnerable to disturbance, with remaining populations increasingly isolated and small.
Key Facts
Habitat & Distribution
Psathyrella ammophila has a wide but sparse distribution throughout the European continent and in limited coastal locations outside Europe, with records of collection in Algeria, New Zealand, and Canada. It can sometimes be found near the shoreline, inside the littoral zone, but is most often encountered in more stable and established sand dunes and dune slacks inland. The presence of marram...
Threats
IUCN Red List: Endangered
The Dune Brittlestem faces severe decline due to coastal habitat destruction and fragmentation from urban development, tourism infrastructure, and sea-level rise. Its highly specialized dune ecosystem requirements make it extremely vulnerable to disturbance, with remaining populations increasingly isolated and small.
Coastal development and urbanization
Sea-level rise and coastal erosion
Tourism and recreational activities
Habitat fragmentation
Sand extraction and dune stabilization
Community Sightings
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Sources & Attribution
How to Cite
IUCN: IUCN (2025). The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2025-1. Available at: https://www.iucnredlist.org. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2025-1.RLTS
GBIF: GBIF.org (2025). GBIF Home Page. Available at: https://www.gbif.org
This page: SpeciesRadar (2025). Dune Brittlestem (Psathyrella ammophila). SpeciesRadar: Intelligence for Earth's Biodiversity. Available at: https://speciesradar.org/species/dune-brittlestem